Children of the Corn

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Children of the Corn

R

1984

1h 33m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

38%

Tomatometer

34 Reviews

40%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

As physician Burt Stanton (Peter Horton) and his girlfriend, Vicky (Linda Hamilton), drive across the Midwest to his new job, their trip comes to a sudden halt when they encounter the body of a murdered boy in the road. In trying to contact the authorities, Burt and Vicky wander into a small town populated only by children, followers of sinister young preacher Isaac Chroner (John Franklin). Soon the couple is fleeing the youthful fanatics, who want to sacrifice them to their demonic deity.

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Critics Consensus

Children of the Corn's strong premise and beginning gets shucked away for a kiddie thriller that runs in circles.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Mar 18, 2026

3/5

‘a tense, effective little shocker that makes hay from the frisson between past and present cultures’

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Julian Singleton

Cinapse

Jul 12, 2025

A love-it-or-leave-it slice of 80’s horror with kernels of camp and creepy dispensed in equal measure.

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

Dec 16, 2024

4/10

Any viewer seeking a provocative thriller about children collectively murdering their parents is honestly spoiled for choice, and almost all of them are probably better ones than this.

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

Sep 20, 2023

3/5

Descends into some hokey territory that feels quite a ways off from the original story, but the earlier chunks of the narrative manage to honor the source material and its commentaries on organized religion.

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Walter Chaw

Film Freak Central

Mar 2, 2023

2.5/4

Well-directed if stolid...

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Stephanie Archer

Film Inquiry

Oct 1, 2022

With today’s growing political environment and in its current form, the original is a terrifying depiction of real life, a timeless film that continually retains its relevance.

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Bruce F

@MoralMaster 3 days ago

Kind of janky and not much of a twist in the late movie just a cult of killing kids and and evil entity

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John K

@RT59028310 3 days ago

I've never been super impressed with this film or the entire series but this one is clearly the best. The premise itself makes the movie somewhat effective since it's so disturbing and the two leads do a good job. As the movie goes on it gets more absurd and loses steam...

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Dustin G

@RT15429247 5 days ago

Not my favorite

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Liam D

@Mediawatcher2003 Oct 19, 2026

Isaac is a strong antagonist thanks to John Franklin’s commanding performance but this movie based on a Stephen King short story suffers an mediocre story with convoluted lore, boring main characters and moments that are unintentionally hilarious

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Ari V

@RT59419633 Oct 18, 2026

If only the children's psychology wasn't so obviously flawed, which doesn't make sense with how smart they are portrayed to be

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Teddy B

@RT90521672 Oct 12, 2026

Hey, at least it was silly instead of dull, like it easily could have been when stretching a short story so, so thin.

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Fritz Kiersch

Director

Peter Horton

Burt Stanton

Linda Hamilton

Vicky

R. G. Armstrong

Diehl

John Franklin

Isaac Chroner

Courtney Gains

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Children of the Corn: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

As physician Burt Stanton (Peter Horton) and his girlfriend, Vicky (Linda Hamilton), drive across the Midwest to his new job, their trip comes to a sudden halt when they encounter the body of a murdered boy in the road. In trying to contact the authorities, Burt and Vicky wander into a small town populated only by children, followers of sinister young preacher Isaac Chroner (John Franklin). Soon the couple is fleeing the youthful fanatics, who want to sacrifice them to their demonic deity.

Director: Fritz Kiersch
Producer: Terrence Kirby, Donald P. Borchers
Screenwriter: George Goldsmith, Stephen King
Distributor: Embassy Pictures, Starmaker Video, Image Entertainment Inc., New World Pictures, Anchor Bay Entertainment
Production Co: Hal Roach Studios Inc.
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 9, 1984, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 1, 2016
Runtime: 1h 33m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Flat (1.85:1)

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